Many individuals suffer from various conditions which make it difficult or impossible for them to rise from the floor or ground on their own. Often, these same individuals have balance and stability issues which can cause repeated falling. Falls often occur in or about the home and most result in very minor or no injury to the fallen person or patient. It is not unusual for the patient to be attended by a single typical caregiver, as in the case of an elderly couple. Most often, a single typical caregiver is not capable of lifting the fallen person, and is at great risk of serious personal injury if a lift is attempted.
A very common solution is to summon emergency personnel for a lift assist, often followed by an unnecessary and costly trip to the hospital for assessment. The hospital visit also needlessly exposes the likely immuno-compromised patient to potential contagious diseases and unnecessary medical procedures. By summoning emergency personnel for a lift assist, the EMTs, paramedics or firefighters are occupied lifting a patient when a genuine life-threatening emergency may arise elsewhere. In addition, the patient and caregiver are subjected to the embarrassment of the fire trucks or ambulance in the driveway and the ensuing commotion.
A device is needed which is suitable for a single typical caregiver to lift a patient from the floor or ground without causing discomfort to the patient, or injury to the caregiver. The device should be easily collapsible, conveniently transportable, compactly storable, and readily opened for service and use by a single typical home caregiver.
The lifting device and system departs drastically from the conventional concepts and designs of prior art through the novel application of pivoting, hinged, and sliding connections, hinged braces, and other aspects.